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Summary

Vandy Beth Glenn worked for two years in the General Assembly’s Office of Legislative Counsel as an editor and proofreader of bill language. Glenn loved her job but privately struggled through years of unrelenting distress as a male. She was diagnosed with Gender Identity Disorder (GID), a serious medical condition, and she prepared to undergo a course of professionally guided treatment that included gender transition. In 2007, Glenn informed her immediate supervisor, Beth Yinger, that she planned to proceed with her transition from male to female. Yinger passed the information on to the General Assembly’s Legislative Counsel, Sewell Brumby, who is the head of the office in which Glenn worked. After confirming that Glenn intended to transition, Brumby fired her on the spot. On July 22, 2008, Lambda Legal brought a federal lawsuit against Georgia General Assembly officials on behalf of Glenn, asserting that her firing violated the Constitution’s equal protection guarantee because it treated her differently due to the nonconformity with gender stereotypes that she evidenced by her determination to live in accordance with her female gender identity. In addition, General Assembly officials disregarded Glenn’s GID and her needed treatment—also an equal protection violation.

Context

There is no federal law explicitly prohibiting discrimination against transgender people in employment, although many courts have held that transgender employees are protected under sex discrimination laws. While a growing number of cities, counties and employers prohibit discrimination based on gender identity and expression, transgender people remain disproportionately vulnerable to discrimination because of widespread bias and lack of understanding of the law of sex discrimination.

Lambda Legal's Impact

Lambda Legal is developing models to help employers become more aware of transgender issues and adopt inclusive and nondiscriminatory policies and practices. A victory in Glenn would send a clear message to employers that discrimination against transgender employees will not be tolerated.

History

July 2008 Lambda Legal files federal lawsuit in Georgia court.

October 2008 Defendants file motion to dismiss.

June 2009 The Court denies the defendants' motion to dismiss; the case moves forward.

August 2010 Court orders Glenn be reinstated in her job. Parties agree that for the duration of the appeal to the Eleventh Circuit, Glenn will receive full salary and benefits in lieu of returning to work.

Vandy Beth Glenn is an Atlanta, Georgia native and graduate of the University of Georgia. She served the U.S. Navy as an officer in the Pacific Ocean then worked for a time in Information Technology.Link: view

(Atlanta, GA, December 6, 2011) — Today the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court ruling that the Georgia General Assembly discriminated against Vandy Beth Glenn, a transgender woman who was fired from her job as Legislative Editor after she told her supervisor that she planned Link: view

Today Lambda Legal urged the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals to uphold a lower court ruling that the Georgia General Assembly discriminated against Vandy Beth Glenn, a transgender woman who was fired from her job as Legislative Editor after she told her supervisor that she planned to transition from male to female.
Link: view

Late yesterday, Lambda Legal filed papers in the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit defending a lower court ruling that the Georgia General Assembly discriminated against Lambda Legal client Vandy Beth Glenn, a transgender woman who was fired from her job as Legislative Editor after she told her supervisor that she planned to transition from male to female.
Link: view

The United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia ruled that the Georgia General Assembly discriminated against Lambda Legal client Vandy Beth Glenn, a transgender woman who was fired from her job as Legislative Editor after she told her supervisor that she planned to transition from male to female.
Link: view

"The federal appeals court in Atlanta on Tuesday ruled in favor of a transgender woman who was fired from her General Assembly job after disclosing she was going to make the transition from man to woman.Link: view

7/6/2010
"A federal judge ruled late Friday that the Georgia General Assembly illegally discriminated against Vandy Beth Glenn, a transgender woman, by firing her from her job as a legislative editor when she announced her plan to transition from male to female.Link: view